Fact Sheet #19: Advocacy Is... Advocacy Is Not...

Helping parents help themselves.
Building confidence so parents are able to help themselves.
Providing necessary tools for appropriate decisions and appropriate action.
Informing parents of their rights.
Helping parents get their rights.
Analyzing a problem and pinpointing areas of responsibility.
Stating options available to resolve a problem.
Providing technical assistance and training.
Providing assistance in locating appropriate services.
Referring to appropriate agencies.
Lobbying for necessary legislation
Agitating to get legislation implemented.
Organizing for change.
Initiating new services.
Investigating grievances.
Following up on complaints.
Going to court when other avenues have failed to get results.
Bringing parents and groups together for mutual support and action.
Advocating and/or interceding on behalf of parents only when they ask.
A partnership with parents, with mutual sharing of information, tasks, and action.
Helping parents go through appropriate channels whenever possible to get services.

Taking over parents' lives (or problems) and making all the decisions for them.
Squelching efforts of self-help.
Reinforcing feelings of helplessness and dependence.
Keeping parents in the dark while doing everything for them.
Keeping parents uninformed about their rights, making them rely on the advocate for everything.
Discouraging parents from becoming activists.
Making excuses for unavailability or inadequacy of services.
Making decisions for parents.
Controlling parents.
Persuading parents to accept "make-do" services.
Closing the door to parents because "there's nothing I can do to help."
Keeping "hands off" of politics.
Accepting the status quo when legislation is not implemented.
Seeking individual solutions to group problems.
Accepting unavailability and inadequacy of services.
Denying existence of problems reported.
Dropping a complaint after initial contact.
Filing a lawsuit as the first approach to a problem.
Working only with individuals when others share a mutual problem.
Interceding on behalf of parents who do not ask.
A parent/child relationship.
Ignoring appropriate channels when trying to get services.

How to Get Services by Being Assertive, by Charlotte Des Jardins published by Family Resource Center on Disabilities, Chicago, IL 1993